This urchin is an omnivorous species, using its arboral spines to trap food and carry it to the oral surface where it uses a specialized feeding apparatus (Aristotle's lantern) to graze and consume its food. Approximately 45% of the diet consists of algae attached to the urchin's burrows and the remainder is algal drift. Some of the macrophytic algae known to be consumed by this species include Dictyota sp., Chaetomorpha sp., Sargassum sp. and Laurencia papilosa, and it is also known to consume seagrasses in the genera Thalassia and Syringodium. Gut contents of some urchins have been observed to include spines from other echinoids (resulting from territorial fights), and sessile invertebrates. (Abbott, et al., 1974; Calderon, et al., 2007; Ebert, et al., 2008; McPherson, 1969)
Primary Diet
herbivore 
 
algivore 
omnivore 
detritivore
Animal Foods
other marine invertebrates
Plant Foods
algae 
macroalgae
Other Foods
detritus